How-To Geek

Google Chrome browser can do so much more than just render websites and run browser extensions. There's a version of Chrome that can automate boring stuff and save you hours of hard work.

Windows ships with plenty of preinstalled apps. While a few are genuinely helpful, many remain unused. These unused apps still consume storage, clutter the Start menu, and sometimes run in the background, placing unnecessary strain on your system. Here are some apps I’ve barely ever used, if at all.

Google Keep had an awesome feature that made it downright impossible to forget things, but it’s being removed, and there’s no replacement in sight. This isn’t just a one-off situation, though. Google continues to “upgrade” users to worse experiences.

Are you confused about why anyone would pay for Linux when it’s supposed to be free? Wondering if Zorin OS is exploiting newcomers with a paid distro? Well, here’s a quick look at what you’re actually paying for—and why that’s worth the asking price.

Most smart home sensors are designed for use inside the house, which is where their presence is most useful. But there’s no reason the data they gather and triggers they enable can’t have utility outside, too. Here are a few all-weather examples of outdoor sensors that you might have overlooked.

For a long time, I thought I was losing my mind. Sometimes, when I open the Duolingo app, the number of Quest Points is lower than I remember having the day before. I was convinced I must be imagining things, but it turns out that this is happening to other people, too.

Another week, another round of must-see movies on Amazon Prime Video. This week, yes, we’re going to laugh a little, but we’re also embarking on some wild, heartfelt, and harrowing adventures.

I do a lot of photography and videography, and those files can take up a lot of storage. I used to just store the footage and photos on my laptop’s internal storage, moving it to the NAS only when needed. Now, I just back up the footage to my NAS first and work from there, and that workflow is so much better. Here’s how I automatically back up my SD card to my NAS, and how you can too.

Tired of desktop environments (DEs) that keep “improving” things that already worked perfectly? Does your modern Linux desktop feel like it was designed for someone else’s workflow? Well, MATE preserves the old way of using a computer—and here’s why it’s the best DE for retro enthusiasts.

I recently turned my old Android phone into a media server with a simple setup. It allows me to broadcast any media files saved in my phone’s storage and make them accessible for streaming on any device with a browser.

Just when did USB ports become such a complete mess? They're easy to follow on the surface, with two relevant types to pay attention to. But if you look closer, they're all kinds of confusing.

Contact sensors, often known as door or window sensors, use magnets to sense open or closed states. You can use this information and the changing of these states to do all sorts of neat things in your smart home.

The HTPC or Home Theater Personal Computer was an idea before its time. Something only well-heeled and tech-savvy tinkering media geeks could even achieve, and then, more often than not, the juice wasn't worth the squeeze. Yet, we have the HTPC to thank for our myriad modern media options. So let's look back at the HTPC and give it the respect it deserves.

If you have a big house, or if you just have thick walls, a mesh network is a really good way to make your network reach every corner of your home. But you'd be surprised by how many people mess up the installation.

There are major Linux distributions dropping releases and patches every week. That means it can be hard to tell which ones really matter. There's one in particular coming later this year though that will change the game for me.

Home Assistant is a Linux-based smart home operating system with a very low barrier to entry. In addition to being completely free, its minimum system specifications mean it works on most computers produced within the last 10 to 15 years (plus humble single-board computers).

Ever since COSMIC was announced in summer 2024, it's been a recurring subject Linux discussions and headlines. I tracked it from its alpha, beta, and full release phases. After giving it a try myself, though, I didn't find it to fit my needs. Here's why.

Despite early criticism and plenty of skepticism from enthusiasts, one American coupe has done what few expected: it won the North American Car of the Year award for 2026. In a field packed with fresh rivals and evolving tastes, this model’s blend of performance, style, and overall engineering impressed judges enough to top the competition, proving that even controversial designs can succeed when the execution is right.

There are a million and one Markdown editors out there, and many of them are actually pretty great. Despite the available options, I'm now using VSCodium almost exclusively when I need to work with Markdown. This is why.

IKEA is known for its furniture, but it’s the little odds and ends that can easily justify a visit on their own. Phone accessories are no exception. Here are some of the best you can currently find at the store, and you may also be able to order them online if you don’t have an IKEA in your area.